Latest COVID-19 Headlines
All the headlines from our COVID-19 Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Hong Kong to Begin Widespread COVID-19 Testing Sept. 1
Aug 21 2020 // Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said on Friday that mass testing of residents for coronavirus in the Asian financial hub will begin on Sept. 1, as she warned people not to be complacent despite a steady fall in the number of...
Brazilian Court Orders JBS to Require Worker Distancing After COVID Outbreak at Plant
Aug 21 2020 // A Brazilian court this week ordered JBS SA to impose a 1.5-meter (5-feet) distance between workers in the production line at its beef plant in Pontes e Lacerda to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus, prosecutors told...
Tennessee Gov Signs COVID-19 Business, School, Nursing Home Liability Law
Aug 20 2020 // Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has signed into law sweeping protections for businesses, schools and nursing homes against coronavirus lawsuits. Lee on Monday touted the legislation as “historic” and argued the law...
Drug Costs for COVID-19 Patients in U.S. Hospitals Drop But May Rise Again
Aug 20 2020 // Medication costs for COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the United States have dropped sharply since May, reflecting advances in treatment, shorter stays and use of cheaper generic drugs. But costs may rise again as...
Cold Chain Mystery: Does Coronavirus Spread Via Contaminated Food Packaging?
Aug 20 2020 // Evidence shows that food is an unlikely route of transmitting the coronavirus across borders, but contaminated items continue to grab the spotlight, deepening the uncertainty over whether the $220 billion cold chain...
Pandemic Hits Insurer AIA Group’s New Business in Hong Kong, China
Aug 20 2020 // Hong Kong-based insurer AIA Group Ltd. on Thursday reported a 37% fall in new business for the first half of the year, as the COVID-19 pandemic dented sales of its insurance products in its main markets of Hong Kong and...
Report: COVID-19 Workers’ Comp Claims on The Rise in California
Aug 19 2020 // The number of California workers’ compensation claims for COVID-19 continues to climb, according to a new report compiled by the California Workers’ Compensation Institute. Data from the Division of...
20% of Meat Plant Workers Infected with Covid in Large Exporter Brazil, Union Says
Aug 19 2020 // One in five workers at Brazil’s meat plants have been infected with coronavirus, according to union estimates. That would make the country home to one of the world’s worst workplace outbreaks. The estimate...
UK Working With Heathrow on COVID Testing as Alternative to Quarantine
Aug 19 2020 // Britain is working with London’s Heathrow Airport on a plan to use COVID-19 testing to help shorten quarantine times, in an effort to help airlines and airports kickstart travel and the wider economy. Heathrow said...
North Carolina Lt. Gov Abandons Lawsuit Challenging Virus Orders on Businesses
Aug 19 2020 // North Carolina Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Forest ended a testy legal battle with campaign rival and Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper last week after a judge rejected Forest’s demand to block Cooper from shuttering businesses...
Constructing a Post-Pandemic Construction Market
Aug 19 2020 // The construction industry may emerge from the pandemic strong or relatively unscathed compared to other segments of the economy. But it also faces its share of challenges in managing exposures, delays, added costs and...
Washington Reporting 576 New Coronavirus Cases
Aug 18 2020 // The Washington State Department of Health is reporting 576 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 15 deaths. King County continues to have the highest numbers in Washington, with 17,623 cases and 694 deaths. Yakima County is...
Airlines, Airports Urge UN to Accept COVID Testing Over Quarantines
Aug 18 2020 // Airlines and airports will ask a UN-led task force meeting on Tuesday to recommend countries accept a negative COVID-19 test within 48 hours of travel as an alternative to quarantines that have decimated demand for travel,...
Europe Urged to Focus on Those Who Must Pay Off Debt After Pandemic
Aug 18 2020 // Rebuilding Europe after the coronavirus pandemic will be akin to the post-World War II reconstruction effort and the bloc must reaffirm its core values despite challenges from global powers, former European Central Bank...
Business, Insurers Face Survival Showdowns Over Pandemic Coverage
Aug 18 2020 // PILANESBERG NATIONAL PARK, South Africa— Wynand du Toit’s safari camp in South Africa’s Pilanesberg National Park lies abandoned, its tents ripped open by baboons and its survival in the balance after his...
Pandemic-Afflicted Cruise Operator Carnival Hit by Ransomware
Aug 18 2020 // Cruise operator Carnival Corp. said on Monday it launched an investigation into a ransomware attack on one of its brand’s information technology systems. Carnival, which operates AIDA, Carnival and Princess cruises...
Pandemic Boosted Personal Auto Insurers’ Profits in the Short-Term
Aug 17 2020 // As bad as the coronavirus pandemic has been for many insurance lines, personal automobile profits have soared thanks to reduced driving, as quarantines and shelter-at-home restrictions took hold across the United States...
Family Sues Illinois Meatpacking Plant After Man’s Death from COVID-19
Aug 17 2020 // The family of a suburban Chicago woman who died of complications related to COVID-19 has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against a meatpacking plant where her husband worked and contracted the virus. The family of Esperanza...
Arizona Reports 933 Additional Virus Cases, 69 More Deaths
Aug 17 2020 // Arizona has reported 933 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases with 69 more deaths, increasing the state’s totals to 192,654 cases and 4,492 deaths. The latest COVID-19-related hospitalization metrics posted Saturday...
Global Insurance M&A Surges in 1st Half but Lull Likely in H2 on COVID Uncertainties
Aug 17 2020 // Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the global insurance industry rose in the first half of 2020 with 201 completed deals worldwide, up from 197 in the second half of 2019, according to Clyde & Co’s...